Happy Birthday Sprout!

Just five years ago, Sprout launched in the U.S. in some 13 million homes with a slate of preschool shows and a single block, The Good Night Show. Today, the service is in more than 50 million households and is one of the fastest growing linear networks in recent history, according to Andrew Beecham, the senior VP of programming for Sprout.

The network has always gone with a scheduling strategy of themed blocks that follow the day of a preschooler, starting with Sprout’s Wiggly Waffle (hosted by The Wiggles, of course!) from 6 a.m. to 9 a.m. and television’s only LIVE show for preschoolers, The Sunny Side Up Show (hosted by Chica the Chicken with Sean, Kelly and Dennisha) from 9 a.m. to 12 p.m., followed by The Sprout Sharing Show (hosted by Ricky, Patti and Curtis E. Owl) from 3 p.m. to 6 p.m. and finally The Good Night Show (hosted by Nina and Star) from 6 p.m. to 9 p.m.

"Each of our three-hour blocks contain around 40 minutes of original content (either hosted elements or interstitials) produced in-house," Beecham explains. "Increasingly, we will look to produce content that can exist naturally in our blocks."

With its originals, Sprout recently expanded from short-form content. "Our programming blocks are created from short 1- to 3-minute interstitial links," says Beecham. "These have been great test beds for creating loveable characters and themes to expand into long-form programming."

Noodle and Doodle is Sprout’s first long-form original show, launching as part of its five-year celebration. The 26×11-minute series makes its debut on September 25. Click here to view a clip of Noodle and Doodle.

"Noodle and Doodle gives us a chance to show art and cookery projects in a larger format than we could do with just interstitial links alone. We hear from our audience that creativity and healthy lifestyles were really underserved on television and it occurred to us that Sprout was the perfect platform to bring this type of programming to our audience."

Additionally, Noodle and Doodle is also the first original from Sprout that will be available for international licensing, something Beecham says he’s keen explore doing more of in the future. "Noodle and Doodle is a totally unique show that combines arts, crafts and cookery for the first time. We felt there would be an interest from the international marketplace for a show like this. If the show proves to be successful, then I believe we will look to offering more originals [for international licensing] in years ahead."

Also part of Sprout’s anniversary celebration, The Sunny Side Up Show is expanding into weekends, to broadcast seven days a week. "Our research tells us that parents and kids have more time to play, more time to create and more time to do structured activities on the weekends. We wanted to support this with bringing our unique live block, The Sunny Side Show, to weekends. This block is not only unique because it’s live, but it’s really interactive and allows parents and kids to connect with us and share birthdays and activities.  You’ll also see us spend more time on creating art projects, cookery and healthy lifestyles….and don’t forget Chica the Chicken too!"

He adds, "Families love Sprout and they love to interact with us on a daily basis. In fact, we have received over one million viewer submissions to date. Whether it’s mom or dad sending in a birthday card, or a Sproutlet sending in a weather report, we receive thousands of emails, cards and requests every week."

Outside of originals, the majority of shows on Sprout are provided by its partners: HIT Entertainment, Sesame Workshop and PBS. "Occasionally, we do make third-party acquisitions like The Wiggles, dirtgirlworld and Chloe’s Closet, but these are few and far between," Beecham explains. "For those producers looking to place their shows on Sprout, I’m interested in series that could be a natural fit into any of our blocks, so please take the time to watch our channel, visit the website or re-read this interview!"

To watch a clip of Noodle and Doodle, please click here.